Fluorinated Greenhouse Gases 2020
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EEA Report No 15/2020 Fluorinated greenhouse gases 2020 Data reported by companies on the production, import, export and destruction of fluorinated greenhouse gases in the European Union, 2007-2019 ISSN 1977-8449 EEA Report No 15/2020 Fluorinated greenhouse gases 2020 Data reported by companies on the production, import, export and destruction of fluorinated greenhouse gases in the European Union, 2007-2019 Cover design: EEA Cover photo: © Isaac Benhesed, on Unsplash Layout: Formato Verde Legal notice The contents of this publication do not necessarily reflect the official opinions of the European Commission or other institutions of the European Union. Neither the European Environment Agency nor any person or company acting on behalf of the Agency is responsible for the use that may be made of the information contained in this report. Brexit notice The withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union did not affect the production of this report. Data reported by the United Kingdom are included in all analyses and assessments contained herein, unless otherwise indicated. Copyright notice © European Environment Agency, 2020 Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged. More information on the European Union is available on the Internet (http://europa.eu). Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union, 2020 ISBN 978-92-9480-294-1 ISSN 1977-8449 doi: 10.2800/08599 European Environment Agency Kongens Nytorv 6 1050 Copenhagen K Denmark Tel.: +45 33 36 71 00 Internet: eea.europa.eu Enquiries: eea.europa.eu/enquiries Contents Contents Contents ....................................................................................................................................... 3 Acknowledgements .................................................................................................................... 5 Executive summary .................................................................................................................... 6 1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 10 1.1 Background ............................................................................................................................10 1.2 Report structure ....................................................................................................................11 1.3 Institutional arrangements ..................................................................................................11 1.4 Scope ......................................................................................................................................11 1.5 Confidentiality ........................................................................................................................11 2 Reporting arrangements .................................................................................................... 13 2.1 Reporting format and quality control .................................................................................13 2.2 Companies reporting in 2020 ..............................................................................................14 3 Fluorinated greenhouse gas activity in the EU ................................................................ 16 3.1 Production and reclamation ................................................................................................16 3.2 Imports and exports .............................................................................................................18 3.3 Destruction and feedstock use of fluorinated greenhouse gases ..................................23 4 Supply of fluorinated greenhouse gases to the EU ......................................................... 25 4.1 Trends in the EU supply by gas............................................................................................25 4.2 Intended applications of EU supply ....................................................................................28 5 Progress of the EU HFC phase-down ................................................................................. 30 6 The international HFC phase-down under the Montreal Protocol ................................ 33 Terminology ............................................................................................................................... 35 Abbreviations ........................................................................................................................... 37 References ................................................................................................................................. 39 Annex 1 Gases covered by Regulation (EU) No 517/2014 ..................................................... 41 Annex 2 F-gases reporting form .............................................................................................. 44 Fluorinated greenhouse gases 2020 3 Contents Annex 3 Reporting forms under the old F-gas Regulation (EC) No 842/2006 ..................... 49 Annex 4 Calculation methods ................................................................................................. 51 Annex 5 Data tables .................................................................................................................. 57 List of data tables in Annex 5 .............................................................................................59 Annex 6 Quality control ........................................................................................................... 78 4 Fluorinated greenhouse gases 2020 Acknowledgements Acknowledgements This report was prepared for the EEA by its European The EEA report coordinator was Peder Gabrielsen Topic Centre on Climate Change Mitigation and and the ETC/CME task manager was Wolfram Jörß. Energy (ETC/CME). The authors of this report were François Dejean (EEA) and the European Commission Wolfram Jörß, Victoria Liste and Sylvie Ludig (ETC/CME Directorate-General for Climate Action are thanked for partner Öko-Institut). their input and support in finalising the report. Fluorinated greenhouse gases 2020 5 Executive summary Executive summary The 2020 edition of the EEA report on fluorinated companies to report their annual production, imports, greenhouse gases (F-gases) confirms the good progress exports and other activities involving HFCs, as well as achieved up to 2019 by the EU in phasing down the other F-gases, and includes all the F-gases covered by use of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), a set of fluorinated the Kyoto Protocol: HFCs, perfluorocarbons (PFCs), gases with a high global warming potential (GWP) that sulphur hexafluoride (SF6) and nitrogen trifluoride is significantly contributing to climate change. (NF3), as well as others such as unsaturated HFCs and hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs). The report evaluates and presents the data reported by companies in 2020 about their activities involving The EU aims to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas F-gases in 2019, assessing the progress on HFC emissions by 2050. F-gases are included in this phase-down made under both EU legislation and the objective. It has committed, under the United Nations Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol. The report Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), also details the amount of F-gases supplied to various to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases by 20 % industrial applications. by 2020 compared with 1990 levels. Under the Paris Agreement, the EU is committed to a 40 % reduction The report expresses F-gas amounts in two different in domestic emissions by 2030 compared with 1990. metrics: physical tonnes, to reflect the use patterns of In line with the European Green Deal, the European F-gases in European industries, and tonnes of carbon Commission has proposed to the European Parliament dioxide equivalent (tCO2e), to account for their global and the Council to increase the ambition for the 2030 warming potential (GWP). climate target from a reduction of 40 % to a reduction of at least 55 %. Context Phase-down of HFCs under the The Montreal Protocol was established in 1987 to EU F-gas Regulation cut the consumption and production of synthetic substances that destroy the protective ozone layer The HFC phase-down under the F-gas Regulation (ozone-depleting substances, ODS). In the EU, ODS is being implemented by annual quantitative limits are regulated separately under Regulation (EC) (quotas) on the placing on the EU market of HFCs by No 1005/2009. producers and importers. The EU-wide maximum quantity for HFCs is subject to a stepwise reduction, Phasing down ODS has led to the increased use of as displayed in Figure ES.1. In 2019, EU-wide placing certain F-gases, most prominently in refrigeration on the market (POM) of HFCs was 2 % below the 2019 and air conditioning, since the early 1990s, as these overall market limit set by the quota system (1 % in chemicals present similar properties to ODS while they 2017 and 2018). The few cases of quota exceedance, do not affect the ozone layer. Consequently, emissions both by importers of bulk HFCs and by equipment of F-gases in the EU-28, of which more than 90 % are importers, were balanced by companies that did not HFCs, increased by 72 % between 1990 and 2014. fully use their quota. Because F-gases are potent greenhouse gases, they As EU industries have been moving to low-GWP have been regulated in the EU since 2014 and their alternatives, the demand for HFCs has been decreasing. emissions